Understandably, when​​ we talk about Colin Kaepernick and Eric Reid, whether we are in support of their protest against various forms of police violence, or against it, we tend to speak of them as being polestars of political polarity — not as everyday people. Kaepernick and Reid are framed in a way that oftentimes denies them the ability to be viewed outside of the scope of their physical act of taking a knee.

This focus blots out one of the most beautiful elements of their kneeling in the first place, and that is their brassbound brotherhood. We are suppressing their genuine love for each other, and what can be learned from it.

I had the honor of traveling with Kaepernick and Reid to Amsterdam, where the global human rights organization, Amnesty International, presented Kaepernick with its highest honor — the 2018 Ambassador of Conscience Award that “celebrates individuals and groups who speak out for justice.”

I watched as a theatre packed with over 1,000 people rose to their feet to honor Kaepernick for his protest against various forms of police violence inflicted upon Black and Brown individuals and communities. I also witnessed the crowd acknowledge, appreciate, and give a standing ovation to Reid for his genuine camaraderie with Kaepernick, and how he unflinchingly kept the protest alive in the NFL by continuing to take a knee.

While much of the attention rightfully fell on Kaepernick and Reid’s protest, I was drawn to their brotherhood, and the love for each other.

Reid opened his speech with a powerful pause; gathering himself, he said to the crowd, “You have to forgive me, as I often get super emotional when speaking about this brother.”

Reid went on to deliver a beautiful speech outlining the essence of what led to him and Kaepernick taking a knee, concluding by saying, “It’s my honor to present the Ambassador of Conscience Award to my brother, Colin Kaepernick.”

This theme of brotherhood and love was on full display as Kaepernick approached the stage, and he and Reid hugged each other, like companions of corresponding complications caused by having the same convictions. They embraced, and their body language let the crowd know that they were in this together.

Kaepernick opened his impassioned speech by showing reciprocal respect for Reid.

“It is only fitting that I have the honor of Eric Reid introducing me for this award,” Kaepernick said. “In many ways, my recognition would not be possible without our brotherhood. I truly consider him to be more than a friend — Eric, his wife, his children … they are all a part of my family.”

Kaepernick then reminded the audience that “love is at the root of our resistance.”

Love is also at the root of their brotherhood.

Reid’s love for both the cause and Kaepernick was in full bloom during the NFL’s confidential meeting to discuss protests against systemic oppression and fatal forms of police violence taking place during the playing of the national anthem.

While NFL owners, league executives, and players convened urgently at the league’s headquarters in New York in October — in a session that Commissioner Roger Goodell urged all in attendance to “make sure that we keep this confidential” — it was Reid that passionately proclaimed that Kaepernick was being, “hung out to dry,” and that, “Nobody stepped up and said we support Colin’s right to do this. We all let him become Public Enemy No. 1 in this country, and he still doesn’t have a job.”

While Reid privately spoke out against the potential blackballing of Kaepernick, publically, Kaepernick shared the same concerns for his “brother” during his Amnesty International speech. Kaepernick expressed the “great joy” that he felt having Reid introduce him for the Ambassador of Conscience award, but he additionally voiced how he is, “also pained by the fact that (Reid’s) taking aknee, and demonstrating courage to protect the rights of Black and Brown people in America, has also led to his ostracization from the NFL … during the prime of his career.”

Kaepernick’s concerns for his “brother” being blacklisted like himself were crystallized when Reid formally filed a collusion grievance against the National Football League.

Their brotherly love for one another is real, resilient, and fortified by a fate that I am sure that neither men saw in their futures when they first became 49ers teammates in 2013. I witnessed that bond, and their simpatico sensibilities, as they spent hours spanking all comers in games of spades till the crack of dawn, cranking the new J. Cole album, collecting books of cads like two cackling librarians, talking shit, backing it up, and once again loving being on the same team. Watching the two play impromptu one-on-one games of basketball, both men astonishingly athletic, both men in awe of one another’s skill set, both simply loving the moment.

It was once said that “When a man loves his brother, he should tell him that he loves him,” and the mutual love that Kaepernick and Reid have displayed, both in action, and in word, are lessons in what it means to truly have an unshakable bond in brotherhood. While their love for justice rightly should be celebrated, their love for each other should be learned from and highlighted.

(Top photo: Peter Dejong/AP)

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Ameer Hasan Loggins is a doctorate candidate in African Diaspora Studies at UC Berkeley, where he also earned a bachelor’s degree in African American Studies and a Masters in African American Studies. Follow Ameer Hasan on Twitter @leftsentthis.